5 replies to this topic

[WreckWench]

Hey gang...remember the good ole days when SD started and people were paranoid to give their last names and they did not want to have their city/state associated with their name...even a partial name? Well it seems we were a whole lot 'smarter' in those days.

If you have NOT shared your life history on social media THEN DON'T. If you have then consider removing as much of it as you can.

Sure its nice to have an old high school or college friend find you. But do you really want OTHERS to find you as well?

And while I am NOT a conspiracy theorist... I am prudent and I do know that abuses happen most of which we'll never be privy too. And while I can not stop those abuses other than with my vote (and we all know how effective that is...LOL!) the BEST plan is to be prudent about what you share in your social media profiles.

Since social media has become a way for us to share with the world who we are, what we like, what we believe in, who we know, our new home or car, what we ate for dinner and when we are on vacation...we should realize that all of this data about us can not only be misused by people we don't trust but it can also be misused by people we should be able to trust.

And the days of being protected are essentially gone. If govt or quasi-govt agencies want information they can get it. And we'll be told that only minimal information was released to 'big brother' but the truth is we'll never know if they released everything or almost everything or far from everything. What we do know is they can't release what we don't tell them.

Think about that... no one can use information they do not have against you.

So rethink your 'share all' mentality and question yourself as to whether someone REALLY needs to know every aspect of your life, beliefs, causes, and politics. If you don't want 'just anyone to know' then its best to not share at all. The days of being protected are essentially gone.

And I know that most of us will think...its only a few people out of millions 'they' are seeking information on. 'They' would want nothing to do with me... and I too felt that way. But the truth is with recent events we now know that govt over reach is far more common and touches the lives of far more common people than ever before. Social media is merely another tool in that arsenal.

So WITHOUT debating IF the govt or others have access to your information ....we know they do.... and WITHOUT debating how bad it is....we'll never know... and WITHOUT debating politics...its a no win proposition AND against our site rules...

PLEASE JUST CONSIDER STREAMLINING WHAT YOU SHARE WITH THE WORLD UNLESS YOU DO NOT CARE WHO KNOWS IT OR HOW THAT INFORMATION IS USED OR WHO USES IT AGAINST YOU.

Facebook: Governments demanded data on 38K users

http://hosted.ap.org...-08-27-09-47-37

[ScubaTex]

If George Orwell lived during these times of Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Groupon, ad infinitum, he would have been writing a book warning us of the Big Brother of the internet which will furnish the government with all the information they've gathered on you, from the time you checked the "I ACCEPT" square and a 'cookie' was installed on your device tracking your every internet move. Now with the advent of the 'smart' phone they are now able to track your every physical move.

In Oct. 2008 I travelled to Raja Ampat for a dive trip, which necessitated my using an Indonesian travel agent for domestic Indonesian air travel. 3 weeks prior to my departure I received an e-mail from the resort telling me to contact the travel agent, because the travel agent's e-mail was being blocked. I thought, even back then, Homeland Security had intercepted the communication, and had probably started a file on me. Now my fears have been confirmed, only now I know the offending agency was the NSA. I will not allow my government to affect where, when or how I travel to my dive locations. This is not to say, I won't evaluate the risk involved to travel to locations depending upon current political confrontations.

We should all be grateful Kamala maintains our privacy, and doesn't sell us out.

Maybe it's time for a new ISP, one who has a policy of blocking ALL cookies, and will not gather or sell data of its customers.

Big Brother is watching!!!

my 2 psi

Edited by ScubaTex, 28 August 2013 - 12:08 PM.

[ev780]

All good ideas. But let me add an even scarier thought.

The "G" probably already has access to things about you that would scare you into a corner of a dark room and cause you to suck your thumb. So my theory is that if the "gubmint" wants to see my vacation photos, it will add little to what they already know about me.

Private data collection is a little different. Google, FB, Twitter can easily build a profile of someone and as you regularly see, target advertising to that profile. Slowly but surely the body of law is catching up and privacy is becoming a real thing. You know those notes you get from everyone about privacy? At least it is an early attempt to help. But for all intents and purposes privacy is dead. Pick your favorite person and go to zabasearch {dot} com. Without even paying a nickel you can see a lot of information. Age, former addresses, etc. Pay the $40 and the information is unlimited!!!!

So, like ScubaTex, I have just quit worrying much about it since we are so far beyond cleaning databases it serves no point. Now with the NSA watching me surf porn on the internet I just figure we are all done for and should just become the Borg collective.

F.

[WreckWench]

Evil prevails when good people do nothing...

Don't just 'accept' but try to be smart about it and if nothing else...let the *other* guy/gal be the one they can more easily get info on.

And of course we should education ourselves so we can help to vote legislative measures that WILL protect us...or at least minimize the damage.

[Kimbuddha]

I just read an article yesterday that banks and credit lending agencies are judging us by the creditworthiness of our social media friends. They are already doing this in Europe apparently.

[WreckWench]

Now THAT should be illegal as hell.